Placement of needles for injection or catheters for prolonged infusion of solutions into a patient inherently carries a risk of infection. There are many steps health care givers can take to mitigate infection in terms of sterilization of the injection or infusion site, the instruments, and the health care givers themselves. There is difficulty in protecting a needle or catheter from contamination once it is removed from the cover used in shipping. Protective coverings or sleeves that are known often seek to protect the needles or catheters from contamination as well as protect a user from accidental needle sticks. As such, protective coverings that initially extend over the tip of a needle or catheter before insertion into an injection or infusion site are often configured to return to that position. These types of protective coverings usually require a large extra force to puncture an injection or infusion site, which is undesirable when dealing with sensitive areas of the human body or with sensitive patients.